Imam Collective - Baltimore
Imam Collective recently released “Baltimore,” the first single off their forthcoming EP, entitled Imam Collective Vol. 1, slated to drop later this year. And I’ll say this right up front: the EP is worth the wait!
Imam Collective
The musical project of Imam Hamdani, who was born and raised in Pakistan, the Imam Collective is made up of Hamdani (guitar), Darren Poindexter (drums), Chris Sartori (bass), Derek Dupuis (keyboards), Alex Lee Clark (trumpet), and Jay Gandhi (bamboo flute). Dale Bales plays bass on “P.S. Blues.”
According to Hamdani, “Baltimore” was inspired by his time entrenched in Boston’s funk scene. Imam Collective’s sound fuses blues and jazz elements with Indian Classical music. The combination provides a provocative concoction, both tasty and affluent.
Hamdani started playing guitar when he was 12-years old. Later, in 2012, he appeared on national television in Pakistan, collecting beau coup praise, followed by a tour. In 2014, Hamdani received a scholarship to study at Berklee College of Music. While attending Berklee, he was introduced to the local music scene by guitarist Jeffrey Lockhart. Hamdani ensconced himself in Boston’s musical landscape, performing with award-winning soul chanteuse Ali McGuirk.
If you’re into tantalizing, big-caliber jazz with lots of funk muscle, “Baltimore” is just what the doctor ordered.
After graduating in 2018, Hamdani began laying down tracks for Imam Collective Vol. 1, at Iron Wax Studio, with recording engineer Alan Evans of Soullive. Most of the tunes on the EP were written in Baltimore, where Hamdani hung out during summer breaks.
If you’re in the Boston area, drive across the Charles River to Cambridge. On the last Friday of every month, Hamdani performs at Toad, along with singer-songwriter Sawyer Lawson.
“Baltimore” opens on a scrumptious funky drum shuffle delivered with style and feel by drummer Darren Poindexter and bassist Chris Sartori. The supple, muscular rhythm paves the way for an oozing organ and a tightly braying trumpet, infusing the tune with burnished flavors. I love the emerging glowing tones from the organ, giving the harmonics silky depth.
Hamdani’s skiffing guitar accents imbue the music with skintight inflections, and when he lets loose on a blistering solo full of charring licks, the tune rockets up to hefty layers of funkified jazz resonance, cool and lip-smacking fabulous.
“Baltimore” is superlative, full of tight and right funk savors atop a syrupy groove, crowned by a drawling organ, Clark’s posh trumpet, and Hamdani’s luscious guitar. If you’re into tantalizing, big-caliber jazz with lots of funk muscle, “Baltimore” is just what the doctor ordered.
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